March 2025 "The Infinite" Playlist - Progressive Metal Constellations
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2Wtb5QsNObO9w62f7ThQNF?si=5c6ff7bc78054fb1
1. Atheist – Air (1993)
2. Black Crown Initiate – Belle The Machine (2016)
3. Car Bomb – Gratitude (2016)
4. Fallujah – Sapphire (2024)
5. Haken – The Architect (feat. Einar Solberg) (2016)
6. Ihsahn – Celestial Violence (feat. Einar Solberg) (2016)
7. Intronaut – Fast Worms (2015)
8. John Petrucci – Gemini (2020)
9. Lowen – May Your Ghost Drink Pure Water (2024)
10. Moon Tooth – Crux (2019)
11. Nospun – The Effervescent Power (2025)
12. Novembre – Marea (2002)
13. OSI – shutDOWN (2003)
14. Pyramaze – Perfectly Imperfect (2015)
15. Threshold – Ground Control (2012)
16. Unexpect – Chromatic Chimera (2006)
17. Zierler – Water (2015)
Here are my thoughts on some tracks:
Atheist – Air (1993)
4.5/5. This waltz-paced track to start this playlist rises from jazzy guitar and cymbal into a riff blizzard. Shaefer's impressive shrieking strike the music down into the snow. Rather than being catchy, the windy music catches the feeling and drags through the breeze. After a bit more fury comes some more commanding jazz.
Black Crown Initiate – Belle The Machine (2016)
5/5. Some of the greatest modern progressive death metal songs are the ones that are around 9 minutes long. This one is so unique and beautiful! Anyone discovering this band should be considered lucky to find great gems in their discography. The instrumentation and growls is like a modern upgrade for Opeth. The guitarwork should be worth playing on a djenty 8-string guitar. Too bad the massive rhythm section of rhythm guitarist Wes Hauch and drummer Jesse Beahler are gone after this album...
Car Bomb – Gratitude (2016)
4.5/5. This trippy track actually has a Deftones-like sound, where a verse drives through with clean vocals and jangly guitars, taking a sideways turn in direction.
Fallujah – Sapphire (2024)
5/5. Over 10 years and still timeless, so much so that its album The Flesh Prevails has been given a f***ing kick-A 10th anniversary remastering. Transcending through this epic djenty sound!
Haken – The Architect (feat. Einar Solberg) (2016)
4.5/5. I still enjoy this Haken epic with a lot going on throughout these 16 minutes. When the heaviness enters in the first minute, it's closer to some jazzy progressive metal packaged from Planet X. The verses don't come until the 3-minute mark, with background 80s synths. Then the riffing hits hard in the chorus. After those 6 minutes of Dream Theater-esque progressiveness, it calms down for a soft ambient break with some guitar fiddling. The ambience slowly rises up for a bit of TOOL and the softer side of Rosetta. When the vocals come back on after a minute, they might remind some of Porcupine Tree. At over the 10-minute point is when things start to sound more like Opeth, especially when we get to hear screamed vocals by Leprous vocalist Einar Solberg, his last screams that he would perform in 5 years. Two minutes later, the heavy djent-ish riffing really fires away. Soon the chorus returns, and we reach the ultimate climax during the final two minutes. Truly an astonishing epic!
Ihsahn – Celestial Violence (feat. Einar Solberg) (2016)
5/5. Up next, we have another track featuring Einar Solberg. Shorter, darker, and showcasing his cleans. What a masterpiece of a song! Ihsahn has appeared in a couple Leprous tracks, so it's good for Einar to return the favor. Truly an anthem that should be remembered for centuries, maybe even millennia!
Intronaut – Fast Worms (2015)
4.5/5. Wow, this is the 4th time this Intronaut song has appeared in an Infinite playlist. I won't complain though, this is f***ing killer jazzy post-/progressive metal with flawless mixing by Devin Townsend.
Novembre – Marea (2002)
4/5. A 3-part 12-minute epic that actually combines two tracks originally in Novembre's debut. Calm acoustics aside, it's a vast improvement and another great track here!